ERI is the next-generation #wearabletech wristband

When I recently blogged a shopping list of “must have” requirements for the next-generation of smart wristband, Jimmy Liao got the memo. We met up last week in Shenzhen, China, where Hong Kong-based Jimmy was able to show off a prototype of his device, ERI, and explain what makes it special.

On first glance, ERI looks like just another tech wristband – and shares many design cues with the Fitbit Force. Except that it’s thinner, thanks to the use of a flexible battery. The patented flexible battery design also provides a half month’s charge in one go – helping solve one of the biggest gripes with the current generation of bands.

“We did a lot of work in developing a battery that would actually flex with the device,” explained Jimmy. “We considered a curved battery but realized that for true flexibility, the battery needed to be bendy, and to last twice or three times as long as the current generation of devices. It wasn’t easy, but we did it!”

The ERI is really packed with technology. There’s NFC (near-field communication) – which according to other wearable experts I chatted to in Shenzhen last week, could ultimately replace Bluetooth for data sync with smartphones. This also means ERI can be used as an identity token. Out running without your credit card? Pay for your coffee at the end of your jog with a wave of your wrist …

Jimmy’s firm DigiCare is also ahead in using nano-silicon for an improved wristband. As previously noted, the current generation of bands are let down by a silicon bracelet that both looks and feels cheap. At least nano-silicon has a softer touch, and once on the wrist, feels almost weightless.

At 6mm, ERI is thinner than the current generation of trackers, as well as packing in an OLED digital display. And there’s more – Jimmy says that proprietary algorithms allow ERI to automatically detect and track different kinds of sports activity – for example, jogging, horse riding and even swimming. It’s not the only proto-band out there to claim this – there are several others on Indiegogo, for example Amiigo, which raised more than 6x its initial funding goal earlier this year.

Jimmy was coy on the detail but says the ERI can even track routes without using a bulky and battery-life consuming GPS module, thanks to capturing “geo-magnetic variation data”. The ERI also includes an ambient temperature sensor, and a pressure sensor, which can be used to help calculate altitude.

Yes, it is disappointing. I received it this weekend. There is no way to keep the display (time, steps or otherwise) always on so you need to tap it to see the time, or steps. I had thought I wouldn’t have to have my other hand free to tap and see progress, time, etc.

[…] So far, there’s no response from ERI maker Digi-Care on how we can get a warranty replacement – or a refund, since the US $99 device they shipped was not even close to the “as advertised” band. The Indiegogo crowd-funding page is still up, and promises market-leading features such as being “extremely soft and thin” (at 7mm it’s certainly not extremely thin and the “nano silicon” band feels just like any other silicon band, and not soft to the touch like the prototype we saw last November in Shenzhen). […]

[…] Just a few days ago we reported on the long-awaited arrival of the ERI smart wristband: A brave go-it-alone effort by a Chinese company to crack the market, supported by a $50,000-plus raise on a crowd-funding platform. Unfortunately, the ERI band sorely failed to live up to its promise, and our example actually stopped working after just two days. So far, there’s no response from ERI maker Digi-Care on how we can get a warranty replacement – or a refund, since the US $99 device they shipped was not even close to the “as advertised” band. The Indiegogo crowd-funding page is still up, and promises market-leading features such as being “extremely soft and thin” (at 7mm it’s certainly not extremely thin and the “nano silicon” band feels just like any other silicon band, and not soft to the touch like the prototype we saw last November in Shenzhen). […]